Bronco of Horseplay

Posted / March 13th, 2015

Next week it’s time to Shake Yer Dix in the Superstore basement with Michael Kelly, plus special guest Bronco who’s trotted into town via Horseplay in Bristol. Joining them in the basement will be the lovely Ego Rodriguez, whilst upstairs for Nancy’s Jonjo Jury and Kim Jakobsen To takeover. Ahead of next Fridays festivities, Michael Kelly gave Bronco a quick equine probing…

So Horseplay. What? Who? When? Where?Why?

Horseplay was born from a desire to get a mixed crowd together to hear alternative dance music, a party where people can dance without inhibition in a haze of smoke and lasers. I run Horseplay with my stable-mates Pony and Jim Carna. We wanted our club to be about the music, but also about building a community of like-minded people… creating a queer dance party with a positive, friendly vibe and a fine dusting of glitter and sleaze.

We started in a dirty basement under a metal bar four years ago, then decided to focus on throwing bigger, quarterly parties in more unexpected spaces in 2013. Last year was pretty amazing – we took over an old strip club, a disused coroner’s court and a police station.

For our next party at the end of April we’re taking over an arts cinema, showing the films Cruising and Interior. Leather Bar in the afternoon. Then in the evening we’ll be re-imagining the world of Cruising as a gender-queer disco… we’ll be encouraging folk to throw on a fake ‘tache and a harness, sniff some poppers and unleash their inner leather queen on the dancefloor.

We’ve had a few articles proclaiming “the death of (gay) London” lately. Sure things change, but they seem a tad… apocalyptic.Have you noticed any changes on the Bristol scene over the last few years?

The gay scene has always been, and should be, an ever-evolving beast. It’s deeply depressing when any pub or club is forced to close because developers want to move in and make a quick buck building overpriced rabbit-hutches. We’re never going to get those places back, people need spaces to go out and socialise… rather than just communicating through apps.

We’re pretty lucky to have a growing alternative gay scene in Bristol. The mainstream gay scene certainly has its place, but we received a huge amount of interest when we started Horseplay by offering something new and different. It’s a great city for people trying new things, I admire anyone that gets off their arse and gives it a go and starts a new night.

We’re heading west toBrizzlefor the weekend… where are you taking us?

One of the most interesting areas of Bristol is?Stokes Croft which has gone through massive changes in the past few years, a bottom-up (heh heh – editor’s note) regeneration spearheaded by artists rather than gentrification by outside developers. There are huge murals everywhere and loads of galleries, cafes and bars. Some of the best places to eat are here, like Katy & Kim’s Kitchen, which started in a converted horse box, but has now moved inside and make awesome breakfasts.

After that you can head down to the docks, which comes into its own in the summer – buzzing with people, the perfect place to sit by the water, have a pint and watch the world go by. In the evening I’d take you dancing to Dirtytalk, who always throw exceptional parties in unique locations.

Anything stoking your dancefloor fires lately?

See Through You by Mighty Mouse – with Ronika on vocals – still puts a grin on my face…

What’s in your record bag (alright, it’s more like to bebeTraktorthese days) for ShakeYerDix?

I’ll be playing a mix of indie dance. Expect some Gigamesh, Chvrches, Punks Jump Up and Cut Copy…

What’s your most memorable Horseplay moment?

Playing the after-party for In Between Time Festival last month… we had Playmodes, a posse of audio-visual artists from Barcelona, create a storm from a ton of lazers while we whipped the dancefloor into meltdown. The crowd went crazy for it.